A permanent memorial for the victims of the Transatlantic Slave Trade - ‘The Ark of Return’ has
been unveiled at the United Nations Headquarters at last. Jamaica was very involved in pushing this - interesting that not one of the Western countries who enriched themselves from slavery contributed to the memorial. India did provide a lot of money and several other countries. Jamaica was the first country to contribute to the fund for the memorial.
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25 March 2015 – This year’s commemoration of the International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade will have particular significance at United Nations Headquarters in New York, where six years of work to establish a permanent memorial to honour the victims pays off with the unveiling today.
Designed by Rodney Leon, an American architect of Haitian descent who was chosen in 2013 as the winner of an international competition attracting a total of 310 entries from 83 countries, ‘The Ark of Return’ honours the memories of the estimated 15 million men, women and children who were victims of the largest forced migration in history.
“It makes me feel extremely proud that I can play a role and a part in the commemoration of such an important and historic day,” Mr. Leon says in an interview. “I feel really proud that we have a physical marker and a place of remembrance for this annual celebration to take place moving forward.”
Having also been chosen to design the African Burial Ground National Monument in lower Manhattan, erected on a spot where 15,000 people of African origin were buried over a period of around 100 years from the 1690s until 1794, Mr. Leon is familiar with art relating to slavery and the African experience in the Americas.
http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=50424#.VRXqMeH3jQo
